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Imagining a movie-to-book adaptation of the Before Trilogy

Readers often find themselves in forum threads and comment sections discussing which of their favorite books should be adapted into a motion picture or a TV show. The discourse also veers towards whether or not the adaptation was good or faithful to the source. However, something that has never entered the public periphery is whether an original movie should be turned into a novel.

When first asked this question, the answer seems simple until you think about it. The usual suspects that come to mind are movie adaptations of the books The Godfather and No Country For Old Men. Then there are those movies with looser adaptations of famous source materials; think Apocalypse Now and Blade Runner. Hollywood ran out of creativity decades ago and now exclusively relies on established IPs, reboots, and book adaptations. Almost all the good books have already been adapted.

No Country for Old Men
The Godfather

Then we must ask, is there a movie with an original script good enough for a novelization? Countless niche picks have doubtlessly crept into your mind as soon as you read the title of this article. As for me, I had my answer before deciding to write this. And it’s Richard Linklater’s Before trilogy.

What would a book adaptation of this timeless trilogy read like? Not only would their slow trot in Vienna against the setting sunlight read more viscerally and contemplatively, but the scenes would have more time to breathe. We would be able to read the inner monologues of both characters; yes, both because the book would have two narrators–Jesse and Celine.

A scene from the movie Before Sunrise. Photo : Pinterest

How would all three movies fit into one book? It would have to be a book of epic proportions. An 800-900 page tome of love and longing, losing each other and pining, finding each other again and marrying, fighting, and finally making up on the Peloponnese coast of Greece. All three movies would be turned into one book, sectioned into three parts corresponding to each film. The narrative can be more fluid and non-linear. The book could also fill in the gaps between each movie, showing snippets of what each character goes through during the 7-year intervals. Some scenes could repeat one after the other, each instance from either character’s perspective.

Sajal Hossain Dhaly

Sajal Hossain Dhaly is a journalist at BRACU Express. He is a Junior and is majoring in Literature at the Department of English and Humanities. He is a connoisseur of fantasy literature and sometimes dabbles in writing poetry only meant for his cat’s ears. Reach him at sajal.hossain.dhaly@g.bracu.ac.bd!

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